The Government must step in to reform English football’s “inadequate” and “out of date” governing bodies, an MP has urged.

And Jim Cunningham (Coventry South) said regulation needed to be considered for the Football League as fans from clubs across the country had been taken for a ride.

He added almost every club had their own problems and there were a huge number of cases of poor governance.

Mr Cunningham made the remarks during a Westminster Hall debate yesterday afternoon after Labour’s Bob Ainsworth (Coventry North East) raised concerns about the Football League’s role in dealing with Coventry City.

The Sky Blues currently play their home games in Northampton, around 33 miles from their previous home at the Ricoh Arena.

Mr Ainsworth said he had been seeking assurances from the Football League, which is responsible for the administration and regulation of the Championship, League One and League Two, that Coventry’s owners had outlined a clear plan to return to the city within a prescribed time frame.

Labour MP Mr Cunningham told the debate on football governance and the situation at Coventry City: “To deal with the situation at Coventry, you’ve got to look at the Football League and you’ve got to consider some sort of regulation or some legal framework of sorts.

“They’ve had a free hand now for many, many years. We’ve seen what’s happened to other clubs up and down the country. That isn’t satisfactory.

“The fans have been taken for a ride here with some of these football clubs and some of these football owners and I think it’s about time now the Government stepped in to this.

“As I’ve already said, a problem not just for Coventry. I am aware that almost every football club in the country has their own problems.

“I believe what has happened in Coventry has been exceptionally inadequate but there are a good number of cases of poor football governance.

“It is clear to me what’s happened at Coventry is not an anomaly. The institutions of domestic football governance are inadequate and are out of date and need to be seriously reformed.”

Mr Cunningham added: “To deal with the situation at Coventry and to prevent it happening in the future we need to look at the Football League and do something about it.”

In January, MPs suggested new laws could be put in place to drive sweeping changes to the way English football is run, following failures by the sport’s authorities to change the governance of the game.

A committee of MPs had said the Premier League wielded too great an influence over the game in England and ordered reforms.

But the culture, media and sport select committee later said it had been “very disappointed” by the football authorities’ response to its proposals for reform made in July 2011.